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p As never before, the progressive forces of the world, especially the peoples of former colonial and semi-colonial possessions of the imperialist powers, are confronted with the 60 vital issue of how best and most radically to accelerate their economic development, how to put world scientific and technological experience to good use for the benefit of social progress in their part of the world. This is a problem of paramount importance for most countries in Asia, Africa and Latin America. The Soviet Union’s immense experience in economic, political, social and cultural development of Russia’s former colonial territories therefore acquires invaluable significance for all economically underdeveloped countries.

p One of the key historical consequences of the October Revolution has been the elimination of economic, political and cultural inequality in the development of the Central European part of the U.S.S.R. and of the once colonially exploited territories of tsarist Russia. This task was made formidable by the extremely low level of the productive forces in those areas. The remaining vestiges of feudalism and even earlier societal forms added to the burden of colonial exploitation. It was the task of the Russian proletariat, equipped as it was with an advanced revolutionary theory, to demonstrate in practical terms the advantages of the socialist system in transforming the previously backward areas into modern thriving economic entities. That this task was carried out in a relatively brief period is more proof of the advantages of socialism in its economic competition with capitalism.

p In the course of economic development spurred by capitalist penetration into Russia’s backward colonial territories there was a growth in the actual inequality between the centre and these territories. Prospects for closing the gap and attaining a higher development level for all these areas either did not exist or, at best, lay in the remote future. In 1913, the whole vast area of Turkestan (now Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Kirghizia) accounted for only 1.7 per cent of manufacturing and mining output as contrasted with European Russia’s 67.2 per cent (excluding Poland).

p As capitalism in Russia took its natural haphazard course, the colonial territories soon became agrarian and raw material appendages of the more prosperous industrial regions. They had no large industry, with very rare exceptions, such as the Baku and Grozny oilfields, Georgian manganese and 61 Siberian gold. What industry there was mostly belonged to foreign capital, local industry consisting only of small artisan works employing agricultural raw materials. In 1911, Turkestan had no more than 143 artisan enterprises, only 9 of which employed over 25 people. In these areas, the industrial proletariat made up less than one per cent of the population. In 1913, there were only 204 Tajik industrial workers, in 1916, 242 Turkmen, and so on.

The cultural level of most of the nationalities there was also extremely low. At the turn of the century, only 2.6 per cent of the indigenous population of Central Asia could read or write, that is, only about a tenth as many as in Russia’s central areas. Before the revolution there was not a single higher school in these cultural backwoods.

Table 17 Literacy in the Russian Empire, 1897 Per cent Men Women Total Total population 29.3 13.1 21.1 including: European Russia ....... Caucasus 32.6 13.2 13.7 6.0 22.9 12.4 Siberia ......... 19.2 5.1 12.3 Central Asia 7.9 2.2 5.3 including: Russians 37.0 13.8 26.0 Turkic peoples ....... 4.4 0.7 2.6 Source: A. Rashin, The Population of Russia Over 100 Years, Moscow, 1956, pp. 307-08 (Russ. ed.).

p With the switch to socialism, these backward areas with their virtually illiterate populations found themselves presented with the objective conditions and real opportunities for becoming advanced national states. With the social reforms that accompanied the October Revolution sweeping through these backward territories, the political and economic requirements of their peoples were soon realised. And with the espousal of Soviet economic and political gains, these nationalities were able to develop their own culture, national in form and socialist in content. Today, the non-Russian 62 republics have an advanced industry, large-scale socialist farming and highly skilled white- and blue-collar workers and scientists. Their standard of living and culture bears no comparison with that of fifty years ago.

p Rapid economic growth brought about radical changes in the sectoral structure of the national income by these republics, with industry figuring prominently. In Armenia and Azerbaijan, industry accounts for 50 per cent of their national income, which makes them industrial nations. Within each of the fifteen Soviet republics, the economy relies on local primary products, which are used with an eye to the economic interests of the country as a whole. In Azerbaijan, it is oil. In Kazakhstan, the very rich natural deposits have enabled the republic to create a thriving heavy industry. It now has a greater per head output of coal, iron ore, cement and sulphuric acid than the U.S.S.R. average. All the republics are fast developing their own power industry: Azerbaijan alone is today generating five times more power than the whole of pre-revolutionary Russia. In electric power per head of population, the republic now stands ahead of Japan, France and Italy.

p It has been the overriding policy to take careful account of national conditions and to bring the economic level of Table Students per 10,000 Population, 1968-69 Soviet Socialist Republics Other countries U.S.S.R.........187 Azerbaijan.......188 Armenia........220 Georgia........190 Kazakhstan......146 Kirghizia.......150 Tajikistan.......145 Turkmenia.......131 Uzbekistan.......192 Italy.......65 * France......88 ** Britain......63 ** Iran.......14 * Pakistan.....26 ** Turkey......30 ** U.S.A.......226 * 1966-67. * 1965-66. Source: The Economy of the U.S.S.R., 1068, pp 174. (>8!> 63 the more backward areas up to that of the more advanced. Each Union republic has been able to diversify its industry and sustain each sector with modern methods and machinery. Georgia, for example, specialises in ferrous metallurgy, machine-tool building, automobiles, chemicals, manganese and non-ferrous metals. Armenia produces a range of precision tools, radio electronics, computers and tools. Azerbaijan makes equipment for extracting and refining oil and has a number of petrochemical plants. Uzbek industry is now advanced enough to produce electric vacuum, semi-conductor and electronic appliances and a variety of sophisticated machinery and machine-tools. Meanwhile, the favourable climate has enabled the non-Russian republics to continue as major producers of vegetables, fruit, tea, cotton, silk, wool, astrakhan and other farm produce.

p The economic progress of the Soviet republics is unparalleled as will be seen from a comparison with the nonSoviet countries sharing a common border with them: Afghanistan, Iran, Turkey and Pakistan. In 1964 these four countries together generated per head 95.6 per cent less electricity than the Central Asian republics; they smelted 98 per cent less steel, mined 97 per cent less coal, produced 85 per cent less cement and almost 99 per cent less sulphuric acid.  [63•1 

p Yet the progress of the once backward peoples of Russia is not expressed in economic indexes alone; their cultures have blossomed. Once liberated from social and national tyranny, they took seven-league strides forward in culture, education, science and health. Every republic now has its own research institutes and academy of sciences. The work of their many physicists, mathematicians, astronomers and biologists has won world renown. In the number of doctors and university graduates per 10,000 population, the Soviet republics are not only well ahead of their neighbours— Afghanistan, Iran, Turkey and Pakistan—but also of many advanced capitalist countries (see Tables 18 and 19).

Development in the Soviet republics demonstrates that the socialist economic system is more progressive and creates objective possibilities for economically underdeveloped areas 64 Table 19 Doctors per 10,000 Population, 1968 Soviet Socialist Republics Other countries U.S.S.R..........25.9 Azerbaijan........24.3 Armenia.........30.1 Georgia.........35.9 Kazakhstan.......20.1 Kirghizia........19.5 Tajikistan........15.4 Turkmenia........21.1 Uzbekistan .......18.1 India.......₂.2**« Iran........3.5* Pakistan.....1.6** Turkey......4.0*** Britain......15.2** Italy.......17.5*** France ...... 16.0** U.S.A.......19.2*** * 1964. ** 1965. *** 1967. **** 1966. Source: The Economy of the U.S.S.R., 1968, pp. 176, 730. to become advanced states in a relatively short time and without going through a capitalist stage of development.

p Soviet economic history warrants the following conclusions.

p First, that socialism has proved itself superior in growth rate to any other socio-economic formation; consequently, it has opened up new historical vistas of development for increasing numbers of nations taking the socialist way.

p Second, it has demonstrated how economically backward countries, once they have rejected capitalism, can, in a short historical period, shed their age-old backwardness and take a fitting place among the world’s most advanced nations.

p Third, that economic planning and development of social production to secure the highest welfare and harmonious development of all members of society are a law of the socialist economy.

p Fourth, that the socialist system opens up a new and potent reserve of economic development by radically altering 65 the purpose of social production and linking the fortunes of individuals with those of society.

Fifth, that socialism ensures a balanced and historically effective development of production, and rising living and cultural standards, and, on that basis, democracy and genuine freedom for all working people. There is much historical evidence of the advantages of a social system based on social property in the means and instruments of production.